What I Spent
Last Friday, I popped by the produce stand and they had a big box of slightly bruised peaches for $15. Woohoo!
Then on Saturday, I got my $25 Hungry Harvest box.
Then I spent $92 on these groceries (including an unpictured $10 package of chicken).
And I went to Costco, where I spent $126.60.
Plus I spent $12 one day when I picked Lisey up from work.
Which means that oh my soul, I spent a LOT of grocery money this week!
$270, to be exact.
Which is, um, $100 more than my weekly budgeted amount.
I’m at $699 so far, and since August is a 5 week shopping month for me, I’m supposed to spend $750.
So. I have $51 left to get me through the month.
I think that’s pretty do-able, largely because I have a lot of proteins in the freezer from my shopping this week.
August Spending
Week 1: $176
Week 2: $110
Week 3: $143
Week 4: $255
What We Ate
Monday
I made these slow-cooker chicken tacos.
We also had chips and queso, plus fresh peaches.
Tuesday
Breakfast for dinner! We had French toast and some local sausages from the freezer.
Wednesday
I tried a turkey meatball recipe, and while I thought the sauce was good, I decided I don’t love ground turkey.
Which makes sense because I don’t actually love turkey that much in general.
So! Ground beef meatballs it is for me.
(like these Swedish meatballs!)
Thursday
I tried a slow-cooker Chinese BBQ chicken recipe, and it was rather meh, despite the fact that you broil it with sauce at the end.
Oh well. At least I fed the people.
I cooked up the rest of the broccoli from the fridge and also sauteed the last of the green beans.
Oh, and we had some steamed dumplings from the frozen conveniences food section at Costco.
(They got me with the samples when I went shopping. Ha.)
Friday
Joshua’s planning to make homemade ramen for us. Whee!
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What have you been eating this week?
P.S. I was on the 2 Frugal Dudes podcast again this week, talking about homeschooling this time. Give it a listen here!
(It’s me! Talking! Can you believe it?)
Katie
Thursday 31st of August 2017
I love that stuffed animals made a come back to the grocery pictures! It reminds me of when I started reading your blog 7 years ago.
lisa
Tuesday 29th of August 2017
I won't eat ground turkey or chicken. DH makes turkey burgers and loves them. Here was our menu: Monday- steakumm sandwiches with onions, hamburger helper Tuesday- garlic chive pasta shells with marinara Wednesday-family had steak and I had cereal Thursday-frittata with croutons, smoked peppers, mozzarella, ham and onions Friday- frozen fish and oven fries Saturday-chicken fingers and fries Sunday-chicken shepherd's pie Monday - ham, potatoes, beans Tuesday (today)- scalloped potatoes and leftover ham
Laura
Monday 28th of August 2017
Oh gosh, so refreshing to find someone that cooks like me (or seems to)! I have some standard fare, but get easily bored and try new recipes. More often than not, the results are not well liked by everyone.
What we ate this last week? Sun - Trader Joe's Orange Chicken, because it was one of those days Mon/Tue - pork carnitas Wed - hamburgers Thur - lentil sloppy joes Fri - shakshuka Sat - tortellini bake w/ broccoli
Sara
Sunday 27th of August 2017
Hi Kristen, Just curious, do you have an instant pot?
Janknitz
Monday 28th of August 2017
I love my Instant Pot. You can make inexpensive cuts of meat in to amazingly voluptuous wonderful stews and braises without a lot of effort or time. I make beautifully clear and jelled broth/stock in a little more than an hour. Soups in one pot, fast and easy. Steam big hard veggies with ease (especially winter squashes!), make yogurt in ONE pot (and depending on the milk it doesn't even have to be heated and cooled first). I like the rice I make in my Instant Pot (we self catered a big celebration with a taco bar, and made all the rice for 150 people in the Instant Pot. It's great for custards (savory or sweet) and cheesecake. I throw in a big bag of chicken wings and 10 -15 minutes later they are under the broiler for crisping. Hard boiled eggs are fast and peel like a dream. One of the best parts is that using it does not heat up the house on hot summer days. We replaced our slow cooker (I rarely slow cook in the Instant Pot, though, I pressure cook the same dishes instead) and rice cooker. If I forget to defrost meat, I just throw it in and the pot thaws it as it starts the cooking process. To me, it's very frugal because we cook from scratch easily and economically with the Instant Pot.
As for turkey, I'm in the Thanksgiving Chicken group, too (but one year we did duck!). Never was a fan of turkey. When we have guests for Thanksgiving we buy a smoked turkey breast. I like that better than just turkey, but still rarely have more than my token piece. I think this is because my mom was frugal and liked to buy big turkeys on sale after Thanksgiving and Christmas for pennies a pound. She'd cook them and for WEEKS (felt like years) we'd have turkey this or that at nearly every meal. I'm an only child, so a big turkey lasted a LONG time in our house. I don't care if I never eat turkey again!!! ;o)
Kristen
Monday 28th of August 2017
I don't! I've mildly considered it, but I hesitate to add another appliance to my kitchen, especially since I'm already having to store appliances in my laundry room, coat closet, and linen closet.
Stacey
Saturday 26th of August 2017
Lets see, this week is a bit crazy with lacrosse starting. Monday - salad bar night at home I'll grill chicken, chop up some veggies, and let everyone build their own. Tuesday- beef soft tacos Wednesday- grilled cheese and tomato basil soup with orzo Thursday- baked ravioli and broccoli Friday - pizza night Saturday - grilled burgers, and fruit Sunday - swedish meatballs with egg noodles and peas